


Room 404: Blank not Found

by Lucashrooms



Category: Sally Face (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Animal Death, Blood and Gore, Body Horror, Demons, Friends to Lovers, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, Graphic Description, Homophobic Language, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Internalized Homophobia, Misgendering, Multi, Murder, Nightmares, Original Character(s), Other, Paranormal Investigators, Polyamory, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Reader Has A Name, Reader's name is Blank, Religious Cults, Sal Fisher and Larry Johnson Are Not Related, Teens being teens, gender neutral reader, plot divergence, teenagers being stupid, these children are dorks, transphobic language
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-08
Updated: 2020-08-01
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:08:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 11
Words: 20,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25138984
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lucashrooms/pseuds/Lucashrooms
Summary: When you wake up in a strange, rundown apartment complex with no name to your own face, this was NOT how you expected things to end up happening. But sometimes you just gotta roll with the hand that the world gives you.Also a demon. No one ever said the world was kind, right?[Mini Hiatus! Will be back soon!]
Relationships: Sal Fisher/Larry Johnson/Original Character, Sal Fisher/Larry Johnson/Reader, Todd Morrison/Neil
Comments: 1
Kudos: 21





	1. The Awakening

**Author's Note:**

> HAHA! I PROMISED BLANK AND I FUCKIN DELIEVERED at least I think I did, that's up for you to decide-
> 
> This story starts out between chapter 1 and 2, and I will be adding my own extra chapters! I hope you enjoy

Surprisingly, waking up in the middle of a dirty kitchen in a run down apartment was the least weird thing out of this situation. 

The weirdest, was the vague sense of deja vu as I sat up, looking around. What was I doing? Where was I...Who was I? As these questions filled my head, I began to panic. 

**Where am I? Who AM I?**

The last thing I could remember…I couldn’t remember? 

Fuck, what was going on..?

_ Okay..Let’s try and stabilize…  _ I thought to myself, before I shakily stood from the floor and looked down at myself. My clothing was nothing special, a sweater with a small design on it and a pair of thick jeans, and a pair of fur lined snow boots.  _ It must be winter then… _ I hummed, confirming my thoughts as I looked out the window to see nothing but a blur of white.  _  
_   
“I must have...passed out in my kitchen, and hit my head so hard that I gave myself amnesia…” I thought out loud, looking around me. It was strange, the kitchen-while grimy- didn’t look used. Neither did the living room set. My eyes locked onto a mirror, and I made my way over to look at it.

I didn’t recognize the person in the mirror, that’s for sure. I looked around 15, and feeling around my head I found a small bump underneath my hair. I winced at the feeling, and let my hands fall back to my sides. 

‘ _ I’m younger than I remember...but I guess to be fair, I can’t remember much of anything...but that must mean I don’t live alone!’ _ The room itself seemed quiet, however. Like there was no life to even begin with.  _ ‘Unless I live by myself then...who let’s a 15 year old rent an apartment anyways?’ _   
  
A loud knock shook me from my thoughts, and I turned to look at the door. Dirty..just like the rest of the apartment. Well...at least it was furnished. Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I headed over to the door, unlocking it and pulling it open. Outside was an older man with light blue hair. He was clearly going up in the years, if his balding had anything to say about it. Next to him was a shorter girl with blue pigtails and a mask on. I flinched at the sight, and the girl was clearly not phased by this response.

“Hello there. You’re one of the new tenants, aren’t you?” The older man said with a small smile. Having nothing to say, I nodded. “Well it’s nice to meet you! I’m Henry Fisher, and this is my son Sal.” He introduced, gesturing a hand to the smaller figure. Ah, so that wasn’t a girl after all. Sal gave a small wave at the mention of his name. 

“My friends call me Sally Face.” He said, shoving his hands into his pockets as if this were a normal conversation to have. 

“Hello..” My voice escaped me before I had a chance to think. I went to give a name, but found my mouth shutting harshly. Couldn’t give them a name if I didn’t even know it, could I? Luckily, it seemed that Mr.Fisher took it as shyness instead of a distinct lack of memory, and his face lit up, looking down at Sal.

“I have an idea. Why don’t take them to meet Larry? I need to get back to work soon.” Henry suggested, gesturing over towards the elevator. “I think he’d enjoy a break from taking care of Lisa.”

Sal didn’t say anything, but nodded his head, which Henry took as agreement. The older man reached down and ruffled his hair, before he turned and began heading towards the end of the hall.

“Great! You two have fun now.” 

_ ‘Then there were two... _ ‘ I thought to myself as I stood there awkwardly, reaching up and rubbing at my neck. We stood there for a bit, before the blue haired boy broke the silence.

“What’s your name?” 

A beat passes, and I'm left rubbing at my neck awkwardly once more. To be fair, I should have expected them to ask my name, right? 

“I don’t know…”

Sal tilted his head like a confused dog, which I chuckled a bit at the imagery. “You don’t know?” 

I hesitated, thinking on the potential consequences. What did I have to lose telling this stranger- who I’ve only known for less than 5 minutes, mind you- that I suddenly woke up passed out in my kitchen with total amnesia? 

“I...forgot it.” It was easier to just tell the truth, I decided with a shrug. “So you can call me whatever you want, I guess.” 

“That’s...troubling to say the least.” Sal said after a bit of silence, before he turned and headed towards the elevator.When he noticed I wasn’t following, he turned his gaze back to me. Jutting his finger out to hit the elevator button, he used his free hand to wave me over.

“Come on, let's go. I'll take you to meet Larry.” 


	2. The Naming

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time to meet Larry!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The name choices are actually from something me and my friend Crypt did lmao love you bud

The elevator ride down to the basement was quiet, but not as awkward as it was. It was comfortable, like Sal made this ride every day. 

Then, with a soft  _ Ding!  _ The elevator doors slowly folded open and we stepped out into the lower floor. Next to the elevator shaft was a vending machine chocked full of sugary and unhealthy junk food, a chair pulled up next to it and a door resting not far away from it with the initials 1B carved into it. On the right side of the room was a washer-dryer pair with a shelving unit not too far away full of what I could only guess was laundry detergent and cleaning supplies.

“Larry’s mom is the janitor here. If you ask nicely, she might let you borrow some cleaner.” Sal said to lighten the air, and I snickered at the idea, shaking my head and shrugging sarcastically. 

“Hell yeah, now I can dissolve that body I found. Thanks, Sally Face.” From what I could see of his eyes, I could tell that he was rolling them, and his response was a gentle shove to the side. “Heey!”

“I can tell you two will get along.” He teased, before he pointed towards the door. “That’s the place.” The door wasn’t nearly as dirty as the one from my apartment, so it seemed Larry’s mother kept her area neat and tidy. 

“You got it. Lead the way, Sal.” I said with a grin, gesturing him forward. “Beauty before age.”

“You don’t even know my age.” He joked back, before he headed towards the door, not even stopping to knock, just walking in .“Larry!” He called, looking around the room. Shaking my head, I followed after him.

“Back here!” a deeper voice called back just a bit softer as I passed the threshold to the apartment. “And mom’s sleeping, so keep it down!” Sal nodded and headed towards the door that had a defiant “Keep Out!” sign on it. 

When we reached the door, Sal knocked politely. “You decent?” He joked and the voice behind the door laughed. 

“You suddenly got a problem with it, Sally Face?”

“I mean, I sure don’t,” Sal snickered, before he sent a glance my way, and I raised my eyebrow at him playfully. “But my buddy here might have a problem with it.” I rolled my eyes at him, and he snickered louder.

A loud, joking sigh. “Fiinnne, you’re good. Come in.” 

  
  


The door opened and it was like walking into a different universe. The cleanliness of the living room had turned into that of a normal teenage boys room. Clothes on the floor, heavy metal posters on the wall and the faintest tinge of what seemed to be pot most likely stuck to the fabrics in the room, almost like the owner was aware of it but didn’t truly care.

There, sitting in the grey bean bag next to the stereo set was the occupant. A tall, pale boy who’s entire body was framed by long, greasy looking brunet hair. He had what seemed to be a brown band tee on and a dark pair of jeans with a chain connected from waist band to the left pocket. 

The figure looked up from what he was fiddling with (which looked to be a sketchbook- clearly used if the crinkles in the front page where anything to go off of) and his face lit up a bit. 

“Heya dude. This the new guy?” 

“Yep, i’m the uh..new...guy..” I said before Sal had a chance to speak for me. The guy- who I could only assume was Larry- smiled and nodded.

“Right on. I’m Larry, nice to meet cha.”

“Nice to meet you, Larry. I’m-” I stopped. ‘ _ Fuck. I forgot I don’t know my own name.’ _

After a beat, Larry raised an eyebrow. “You’re…?” 

_ ‘Fuck. What do I tell him? “Hey guess what, I don’t remember my own name?” How would someone even go about REACTING to that? Especially someone you literally JUST met...’  _ While I was stuck in my thoughts, Sal-noticing the tension in the air- took it upon himself to answer for me.

“They don’t remember.” Both pairs of eyes locked on to me and I gulped and let out a shaky laugh.

“Heheh...I’m in danger.”

And that’s how I found myself sitting on the giant grey bean bag with both boys explaining my morning like a goddamn story book. It wasn’t very long, of course, and eventually it was just quiet as the boys mulled it all over. I don’t know why I was anxious about their thoughts, because I knew I was truthful, but maybe it was the want for someone to believe me? Even if we had only met not even an hour beforehand. 

After a hot minute of silence, Larry was the one to break it.

“So wait, you can't even remember your name?” He asked, sitting up a bit and looking over at me, to which I answered with a nod.

“For the most part, yeah...It's that bad.”

“So...what do we call you?” Sal asked, sitting up as well. That’s right...I’d have to have something to go by, right? I can’t just be the person from 404 can I? Regardless of how cool that sounds..

I shrugged, and looked between the boys. “ I guess you guys can come up with it if you want.” Larry let out a loud gasp and fist bumped the air.

“Really?! Fuckin sweet! It’ll be like having a pet!” I snickered at his excitement and Sal let out a sarcastic huff of laughter, playfully shoving his friend a bit. 

“That was not a thought I wanted to have today, but thanks Larry.” 

“Heh, anytime, bro!” Larry grinned, before he looked around the room, his eyes locking on to a forgotten bowl of spaghetti next to his bed. “Hmm...what about Pasta?” I rolled my eyes.

“Absolutely not. Next.”    
  


Sal was up next, and after a bit of thinking he snapped his fingers. “Uh...how about Amnesiac?” and I shook my head.

“A very cool idea, but I think that would raise more questions than it would answer, Sally Face.” I answered and he nodded, before going back into thought once more. Larry went again, clapping his hands like a seal as he shot up.

“Ooh Ooh! Dorito!” he shouted, and I raised my eyebrow at him.

“Larry, I think you’re just hungry.”

“What flavor?” Sal laughed and the greasy brunet was quick to answer it with a satisfied grin.

“Cool Ranch!” 

“ **Next.** ” 

“What about Weed?” 

“Sal Fisher, do you wanna get smacked?” I joke-threatened, raising my hand a bit and he caught me off guard by giving me a highfive, which sent me flying back into the chair cackling.

Finally, Larry broke through the laughter with one last name.

“Hmm..how about Blank?” He asked, his eyes locked on his blanket in the corner.

“...That….actually wasn’t a terrible choice.” I admitted after I calmed down from laughter. 

Larry fist bumped the air again, with a quiet “ _ yes!” _

“Well then, welcome to Addison Apartments,  **Blank** !”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Boom! We got a name!


	3. The Store

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When you're low on food in the house, who better to go to the store with then Larry and Sal?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know these few chapters haven't been very eventful, but don't worry! Next chapter we'll be starting up the in game Chapter Two: The Wretched!

It had been at least a week since I took on the name Blank, and it was the weirdest week of my life. At least, what I could remember of it, anyways.

Everyday was a hang out session with Sal or Larry, who I learned where absolute fucking gremlins. Larry was always coming up with something to keep us entertained- at least as much as he could given the cold of winter. He introduced me to Sanity’s Fall, which I enjoyed quite a bit. Sal was less daring then Larry, but don’t count him short, he was always willing to take one for the team. 

School would be starting up soon, and that meant we’d have something to do instead of hang around the apartment complex. I’ll admit, I'd been a little worried about leaving the plot, so when I found a note waiting in my kitchen saying that I needed to go buy groceries, I wasn’t thrilled with it.

_ ‘Hey Kiddo, I’m working a late shift tonight so I won’t be able to go do the shopping like normal. Would you mind taking a run to the store for me? Thanks! -M’  _ is what it read, and under it was a wallet with a strange print on it. Was it mine? 

Confused as to who this ‘M’ person was, I took the wallet and headed back to my room to get changed into my winter clothes, grumbling the entire way. On the way, I spotted the walkie talkie I got from Larry and got a brilliant idea.  _ Why go shopping alone when I could do it with friends?  _ I thought as I raced over and grabbed it, turning it on with a satisfying  _ Crick! _

“Anyone up for a little shopping trip?” I asked into it as I popped on a jacket and grabbed my beanie from its place on a hook.

Larry was the first one to pick up.  _ “That would be so great! I need to pick up some medicine for ma.”  _ He sounded a little worn out, but I was glad that he was willing to join.  _ “What say you, Sally Face?” _

  
  


It was silent for a few seconds, but eventually Sal’s voice broke through. “ _ Yeah, i’ll go with you. My dad’s working late tonight and we’re running low on stuff to make.” _ I fist bumped the air and did a once over of myself, before I grabbed my keys and headed for the apartment door.

“Sweet! I’ll wait for you both near the mailboxes!” I said finally and put the talkie back into my pockets, before I did one final check that I had everything with me. Keys, bandages, pocket knife...yep I was set! 

I stepped out of the apartment and locked the door, heading for the elevators and hitting the button. The ride was short and I stepped out into the lobby. No one was down here yet, so I made my way over to the mailboxes, deciding to check and see if there was anything in there.

Surprisingly, there was a letter for someone named Maggot Degras in the 404 mailbox.  _ “That must be who that ‘M’ was…” _ I thought and shoved it into my back pocket. The elevator let out a  _ ding!  _ As it came back up and Larry stepped out, not at all dressed for the winter weather, to which I raised an eyebrow. 

“You’re going out like that?” I asked, and he nodded, looking down at his red jacket. “You’re gonna freeze, you string bean.” He only shrugged. “You’re gonna go out there and i’m gonna have to push a 5’8” dorksicle inside and have to explain to his mommy why he looks like Snow Miser.”

“It is what it is, Chips.” He said with a smug grin as the elevator pulled open again, and out stepped Sal, actually dressed for the cold outside. The shorter boy walked over, before he tilted his head at Larry.

“You’re going out like that?” He asked, confusion heavy in his voice as Larry bursted into giggles. 

“THANK YOU!” I cried, throwing up my hands and Larry’s laughter only got louder before we joined in. “Alright you goons, let’s get going. Larry lead the way.”

“What? Why me?” He asked as we stepped outside into the snow. He tried to hide the chill that ran down his body and I just rolled my eyes. He would be a Larrysicle if we didn’t keep moving. 

“Because you’re taller, you’ll act like a beacon.” Sal joked and the brunet rolled his eyes but complied with a sarcastic huff. I snickered at the man's reaction and followed after him down the road. It was quiet, not many people out to make noise luckily, and we fell into a comfortable silence, the only sound being the crunching of snow under our shoes.

The walk to the store wasn’t long, roughly about 15 minutes, and Larry sprinted when he saw it. “I told you it’d be too cold!” I shouted after him as me and Sal quickened to catch up to the freezing boy.

“Ya snooze ya lose, Cookie!” 

“That doesn’t apply here!” I snickered as we entered the store. It was fairly empty, I could only see a handful of people inside. I grabbed a basket from the stack by the door and looked over at the boys,who did the same thing. “We walkin back together?” 

“Sure, I wouldn't want you getting lost.” Sal hummed as he headed over towards the frozen food aisle. The other boy nodded his agreement, pointing a finger over to the soup aisle before he walked off.

Now by myself in the store, I headed over to the produce section to begin my scavenge for groceries, which admittedly was hard to do when you couldn’t remember what you or your housemate enjoyed eating. I kept it simple, going for easy to make meals instead of overly complex foods. 

Though I won’t say I DIDN’T grab some junk food for myself. Hey, it’s been a stressful week, don’t judge me!

Once or twice I'd meet one of the boys in an aisle, and I'd jokingly throw up a peace sign until they did it back. Eventually, I had filled up my basket and headed over to check out, Larry and Sal not far behind me. The process of emptying my basket onto the conveyor belt wasn’t too long fortunately, and the cashier- who obviously just wanted to go home- rolled their eyes and began to scan them one by one.

“87.43.” They groaned out and I winced at the number, but grabbed for my wallet. It wasn’t empty by any means, a few dollars, a couple of Monopoly “get out of jail free” cards, and a credit card which I grabbed and swiped through the machine.  _ “Please work, please work..”  _ I thought to myself as the machine processed 

Thanks to the gods' good graces, it worked! Mentally fist bumping the air, I grabbed the bags that contained my groceries and when the cashier held out the receipt I tucked it away in my pocket. I looked over at Larry and Sal, who were looking at me in bewilderment, before I jokingly gestured them towards the conveyor belt. 

“I’ll wait for you by the doors, boys!~” I sang before I headed over to the doors to prepare for walk back home. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maggot Degras I love you very much.
> 
> Next time we're starting up chapter two! get hype!
> 
> See ya then!
> 
> That's a threat!~


	4. The Wretched {1}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What started as an innocent hang out between friends quickly turns sour.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo! In game chapter two begins now! This will definitely be a few chapters worth of content, so please bear with me!
> 
> I am using dialogue from the game, so it will take me a bit of trial and error to get it all set up and nice!

_ The void was dark and quiet. Like being encased in a blanket that blocked out everything in the outside world. Many would think it terrifying, not knowing what was happening. But I embraced it with open arms. They say ignorance is bliss, and I wish I could have gone back to when I didn’t know how the world out there worked. _

_ But in an instant, I was ripped away from my ignorance and enveloped in a white light. I blinked slowly, allowing my eyes to adjust, and as I looked around, I realized that I stood in my own kitchenette. We had just started moving in and I was left to do the unpacking because of my brother’s terrible work schedule. But I was alright with it, I knew where to put everything away and how to fend for myself. I could handle a little bit of grunt work. I busied myself with unwrapping the fine cutlery when a loud creak caught my attention.  _

_ When I turned I was met with piercing red eyes, eyes full of nothing but malice and harmful intent. I had tried to run, but before I could even get out of the kitchen I tripped over a box and hit my head harshly upon the tile floor. I sat up dizzily, looking up to see my potential attacker. The being with red eyes peered over me and readied itself to strike. With a loud hiss, it came down and I clenched my eyes shut, hoping that it would pass. _

Sitting up my bed with a loud gasp, my eyes swept over the room. It was my bedroom, the one I had been living in for almost two months. A familiar sight for my own sore eyes. Not a single noise filled the apartment, which must mean Maggot hadn’t returned home yet. 

I was alone, left with nothing but the occasional crinkle of the walkie talkie, my own labored breathing and the intense pounding of my heart threatening to escape my rib cage. I dared a look over at my bedside clock, which read back the numbers  **4:32am** back to me. 

“It was just a nightmare..” I said out loud to myself, before I looked over at the walkie talkie. I thought to wake either Sal or Larry to tell them about my dream..but that would be taking it too far, wouldn’t it?

Instead, I grabbed the walkie talkie and slowly pushed myself out of bed. I decided that I would go get something to drink from the kitchen and then go right back to sleep. As I walked over to my door, however, I couldn’t push down the all too familiar feeling of being watched. Regardless, I ventured forwards and made my way into the kitchen, grabbing a juice box from the fridge.

_ Step. Step. Step. _

The step of soft footsteps out in the hallway caught my attention as I turned to face the front door. After a bit, they stopped and the front door knob began to rustle . Eventually it opened and in stepped a tall man with long, purple hair. He looked tired, and a little grumpy. But when he looked over, his frown went away. He walked in and shut the door behind him as he headed into the kitchen, opening the fridge and grabbing himself a beer.

When he closed it he reached out a gloved hand and rustled my hair before he turned back to his drink. “Heya kiddo, wasn’t expecting you up this late.” He said with a smile after he downed a bit of his beer.

I returned his smile with my own weary one, looking down at my juice box. “Heya Mags. I uh...had a nightmare.” Surely that was believable right? Clearly it was enough as he nodded and looked around the kitchen. “You’re back pretty late..”

“Just a late shift is all.” Is all he said on the subject before he slammed back the rest of his drink, crushing the can in his hand with a satisfying pop. “You should be heading back to bed, kiddo. Being up this early’s not good for ya.” He teased and I jokingly scoffed at him.

“Says the man who just walked in.” I shot back, and he laughed and wiggled his finger.

“You got me there, kid.” Maggot finished with a smile, before he tossed his can into the garbage. “Well, I’m gonna head to bed. Got another shift later.” And with that, the man made his way to his room and the room was silent again.

Surprisingly, the small talk with Maggot has calmed me down, and I finished my juice box and headed back to bed. Though I could have swore I heard a sharp gasp from the walkie talkie right before I succumbed to slumber.

-

When I woke up again, it was to the sound of the walkie talkie going over, a familiar deep voice echoing through it.

“Yo Soup! You awake?” Larry’s voice rang and I groaned, reaching over and turning it on. 

“This is Blanket Fort to Heavy Metal, I read you loud and clear.” I joked back as I sat up and rubbed at my eyes. The clock read  **12:53pm** as I stretched out a bit. “Jesus, it’s that late already?”

“We didn’t know if you were gonna show.” Larry said honestly, and the walkie crackled as another line opened. 

“I was wondering how long it would take for you to get up, Blank.” A smoother voice rang over the electronic and I rolled my eyes. 

“Thanks Sally Face, I appreciate ya.”

“Anytime.” 

I snorted and slunked out of bed, heading over to my wardrobe to pick out an outfit. After a bit of deciding I pulled out a sweater that I stole from Sal and a pair of overalls that had been graffitied by Larry to have the Sanity’s fall logo on it. It was a small gesture, but it meant a lot to me.

“You gonna come down to hang, Frito?” Larry asked and I absently modded, forgetting that he couldn’t actually see me. When I realized this, I hit the button on the side of the electronic.

“Yeah, I’m getting ready now. God I should just move in at this point.” I teased and Sal snorted. 

“You and me both. We’ll be the rats in the basement.” He joked back, and I laughed as I slipped on my boots and grabbed for my jacket and ear muffs- just in case we had to leave the apartments.

“Alright smartass, i’m on my way.” Sal's laughter was cut short as I sped out of the apartment, turning off the walkie talkie as I went.

-

The ride down to the basement was short, and eventually I reached Larry’s room, chilling on the couch with Sal as Larry took over his bean bag. There was some lighter music playing (as light as metal could get, at least) and I could tell that Sal was exhausted as he rest his head against the arm rest. 

“Man, you’re still having those nightmares?” Larry asked, reclining back into his bean bag with his arms behind his head. Sal nodded, slowly raising his head to look over at the greasy haired boy.

“I haven’t had them this bad since right after my mom died. I really think it’s this building...there’s something off about it.” His voice just oozed weariness, and I reached over and began to run my hands through his hair, which he allowed me to do with a small hum of "Thanks.".

“Have you tried taking anything to help you sleep?” I asked curiously, and all I got back was a shake of his head. 

“Doesn’t work on me. It’s like i’m immune or something.” he admitted, closing his eyes. 

“I could try conking you on the head.” I joked and he snorted, pushing my hand away. 

“Yeah, like that will help.” 

“Dude, I know you’re so insistent about it, but I really don’t think this place is haunted.” Larry said after a bit, and Sal-from what I could tell at least- rolled his eyes. “I’ve been here most of my life and haven’t seen any ghosts…but...” Larry cut himself off, and I raised an eyebrow at him.

“What’s up, Larry?” I asked and he just started off blankly. I shared a look with Sal, and looked back at the greasy haired boy. 

“But?” Sal urged and that seemed to snap him out of it, shaking his head a bit. 

“Sorry, Sorry. “ He apologized, and I just waved him off. “It’s just...well, we’ve all known each other for a while now. I have to show you both something.” Larry stood up and stretched, before he headed over to the coat rack by the door leading to the complex’s backyard.

“Come on.”

I pushed myself up and followed after him, grabbing for my jacket and slipping it on, putting on my ear muffs. Sal followed quickly after, slipping on his own cold clothing. When we were ready, Larry pushed open the basement doors and led us up into the snow covered backyard.

“It’s going to be a bit of a walk.” He warned, and we echoed back an “Okay.” 

He wasn’t wrong, it was a bit of a walk, a good maybe 2-3 minutes before we caught a glimpse of what he wanted to show us. 

“Whoa! How come you never told us about this?” Sal asked as he looked up at the tree house. It looked a little beaten up but it was definitely still holding up to the test of time. Larry shrugged as he headed over to the makeshift ladder.

“It’s where I go when I need to be alone. It’s my fortress of solitude.” he admitted. 

“It looks really nice, Larry.” I complimented, and he smiled as he began to climb. I let Sal go next and followed after him, taking his hand as he hoisted me up. 

The interior was simple, but very homey. Picture frames and drawings littered the walls, and there were a few knickknacks and such around the floor plan. There was a pair of bean bags so I took it upon myself to plop down into it, taking off my earmuffs as I did so.

  
  


“This is so cool! I always wanted a tree house when I was younger.” Sal said as he continued looking around and Larry chuckled at his amazement. 

“Yeah. My dad built this for me before he...disappeared.” Larry admitted, and the atmosphere shifted immediately. 

“Disappeared..?” I asked, looking over at him and he just nodded. “What do you mean, Larry?”

The greasy haired boy shrugged, his eyes looking up at the ceiling. “One day he was here and everything was okay..and then the next day he was just gone. No note, no nothing.” He explained, his gaze darting over to a box in the corner. “And all of his things were still here. His clothes, his tools, wallet, driver’s license...everything. He just disappeared.”

“Damn...I’m so sorry, Larry.” Sal started, rubbing his hands together a bit. “I know how hard that is...did your parents not get along?” Larry was quick to shake his head in disagreement.

“No, my parents loved each other. They hardly fought or anything.” He explained and I watched as the gears in his head turned. “It isn’t what it sounds like, my dad didn’t leave us...Even if that’s what my mom chooses to believe. I know he wouldn’t ever leave us like that, he loved us..” 

“What do you think happened to him?” I asked after a bit, and he shrugged once more.

“Look, You know I’m not generally superstitious, and I know how you two and Chug swear that the apartments are haunted...but...Well, I think it’s something else.” 

**“Like what?”** Me and Sal echoed together, which got a small laugh out of the brunet.

“I haven’t told many people about this, but I know I can trust you both. I know you won’t judge me.” He said honestly, and I smiled over at him. 

“Of course not.” Sal urged, taking a seat on the other bean bag. Larry was the only one standing now, and he looked around nervously.

“Well..here’s what happened.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cliffhanger!
> 
> What's Larry's story? What happened to his dad?
> 
> Why is Blank having nightmares?
> 
> Find out next time!


	5. The Wretched {2}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Larry goes into detail about what happened to his father.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Larry explains what happened to his dad and then minor shenanigans ensue.

“The day before my dad disappeared, I did something that I'm not too proud of.” The brunet started, staring up at the ceiling of the tree house. “My parents got some firecrackers and told me so many times to wait for them, that i’m not to play with them on my own.” He took a small break to let out a shaky, sarcastic laugh.

“But I just couldn’t resist, dudes.” 

I forced myself to suppress my urge to stand up and give him a hug, and after a few seconds he sighed and continued on.

“So I did what any stupid kid would do. I lit a few outback in the backyard. What I wasn’t expecting to happen was one ended up flying through Mrs. Gibson’s open window. “ He walked over and pointed out the window, and I craned my neck to see that he was demonstrating where the stray had flown. “It ended up killing her pet rabbit.” 

I winced at the mental image, and Sal seemed to agree with me, speaking up “Oh man..that’s rough.”

“Yeah..” Larry nodded, and he turned back to face us. “So, I ran inside the apartments to go check on Mrs.Gibson, and she started screaming at me like crazy. As if I needed another reason to piss that old bag off.” He rolled his eyes, and looked down at the floor solemnly, kicking around a bit of dust with his shoe. “I felt terrible though..that poor bunny.”

“Aw Larry..I’m so sorry that happened..” I spoke and he looked up, giving me a small nod. 

“Anyway, as I was coming down in the elevator..that’s when I saw the demon.” The warmth of the atmosphere vanished in an instant, and the air in the treehouse became thick. Tension so thick you could cut it with a knife.Yet Larry continued on with his story.

“He reached over and touched me, and I got this super cold chill down my entire body..I was scared shitless dude!” He chuckled a little bit in fear as he recalled the memory. “I thought I was losing my mind..He was gone as quick as he came, just as the elevator doors opened….He cursed me.” Larry shook his head angrily, his gaze looking back harshly on the apartment complex. When he spoke again, it only got louder. 

“Because of what I did, he fucking cursed me.Everything in my life has been fucked since. My dad disappeared, My mom stopped talking all together for a while, had to spend two weeks in juvy for accidentally killing that rabbit, my bike was stolen. Heh, I even missed so much school that I had to take summer classes. Just one bad thing after the next.” He stopped his rant short to breathe, leaning against the wall to catch it. 

I glanced over at Sal, who seemed to be picking at his sweater sleeve. He must still be absorbing what Larry was saying. At least, from what I could tell, anyways. His eye was a bit glassy, and I reached over and laid my hand on his shoulder, to which he jolted a bit from.

“You alright..?” I whispered, and he looked around a bit, surveying the room before he nodded back to me. 

“I’ll be fine.” Sal said with a smile, and he turned his gaze over to a picture on the wall. I then turned to look over at Larry, who was leaning on the window sill, staring out blankly. 

“So..you think this curse took your dad away?” Sal asked after a couple of minutes, and Larry nodded, turning back to face us. 

“Yeah..I know how it sounds, but I know that it’s true. It’s all my fault. My dad, the rabbit, Mrs.Sanderson. Everything.” He hummed, kicking at some more dirt. “And I'm willing to bet I'm the reason Blank lost their memory.”

I frowned at that. “Larry, no. It’s not your fault at all.” The brunet turned away, and Sal spoke up as well. 

“Yeah man. Even if there is some kind of curse on you, you can’t blame every single bad thing that happens on yourself. It’s not all your fault.” Larry didn’t say anything, and Sal continued on. “What did this supposed demon look like?” 

“It was like nothing I’ve ever seen before. It was like a moving shadow,all black and misty but in the form of a man.” Larry began, and I began to feel something deep inside me start to churn.  _ Why did this sound so familiar to me? “ _ And the eyes..god, the eyes. They were the worst part. This really deep red that just pierced right through you if you looked directly at them.”

That’s when it hit me.

Piercing red eyes..shadowy figure...

**_The thing from my dream. Fuck, it was real? Was that really a dream…? It had to be, I woke up in my bed...was it a memory?_ **

I was pulled from my thoughts when Sal let out a loud “Holy shit!”, which startled me into an upright position.

“What?” Larry asked, shoving his hands into his jacket. Heh, the cold must have been getting to him. 

“I’ve seen it too! I’ve seen your demon!” Sal said, pushing himself up from his bean bag chair. Larry’s face went from solemn to a strange mix of fear and excitement. 

“What? No way! When?”

“I swear, i’ve seen it somewhere in the building. Just like you described.” Sal said, crossing his arms in a satisfied manner. “I bet it’s linked to the other ghosts too.”

“Other ghosts?” I asked, standing up slowly and walking over to join the conversation. Sal nodded my direction, in more of an “ _ I’ll explain later” _ sort of way.

“I don’t know dude..” Larry admitted, looking back down at his shoes. He seemed to be feeling a bit better after venting, which was a good sign. Nevertheless, Sal continued on with his point. 

“What if we could break that curse of yours??” 

“All by ourselves?” I asked. It was kind of a stupid idea, but the blue haired boy seemed to be pretty into it. 

“Yeah. Maybe there are some clues around that could help us. We could try and find out more about the ghosts. See if we can get to the bottom of this.” Larry chuckled, walking over and taking a seat on one of the bean bags that me and Sal had abandoned.

“Sure. Why not? What do I have to lose?” It was meant to be a bit snarky, but Sal had either ignored it or just didn’t hear him as he headed over towards the grey filing cabinet. 

I decided to leave Sal to his own devices, heading over to Larry and taking a seat next to him.

“You alright, man?” I asked and he shrugged, leaning his head back against the bean bag and looking up at the ceiling. His hoodie fell down, letting his hair spiral out underneath him a bit. 

He looked a little drained, but I suppose it was to be expected after talking for so long about a heavy subject.

“I don’t know..I’m just tired.” He said honestly, reaching a hand up and resting his arm above his eyes. “I didn’t mean to get so heated..it’s just when I think back on my own mistakes I think of what I could have differently, you know? How it could have all been avoided so easily..” 

“I can understand that.” I said, nodding as I laid next to him, to which he raised his arm and looked over at me. 

“But sometimes you have to learn to let it all go, you know? I know I'm not the best to talk to because I can’t even remember my real name..but I do think it’s better to let the past be the past. But I can agree that closure is helpful, but we can’t take back what we do, we can only try and improve ourselves.” I explained and when I didn’t get an answer, I looked over and locked eyes with Larry and gave him a small smile.

His eyes were still a little bit shocked, but eventually he returned my smile, reaching over and rustling my hair with a grin. “Heh, thanks Cool Ranch.” He laughed as I whined, reaching up and flailing at his assault on my head.

“Yeah yeah yeah, you’re lucky you’re cute Larry.” I joked and he snickered a bit, his cheeks heating up a little in what I assumed to be embarrassment. 

“It’s a gift.” He threw back, and before I could shoot something to retort, Sal let out a surprised noise, which quickly grabbed our attention. Looking over he was holding up a framed photograph in one hand and his Gear Boy in the other, looking between them as the game beeped and buzzed with vigor.

“Huh..that’s strange.” He said after a bit of investigation and Larry called him over. “I found this old Gear Boy cartridge in the lost and found box a while ago. I think it reacts to supernatural activity.” 

Larry looked at the photo he held and frowned a bit. “That was one of the last photos we took together. Not long before he disappeared.” 

I took the picture frame from Sal’s hand and looked at it with a hum. “Wow, you used to have braces, Larry? Cute.” My only reply was a shove off of the bean bag, which I cackled at. 

After I finished my laughing session, I slid the picture frame into my pocket. When I saw Larry’s confused look, I explained, “If the Gear Boy picked up on it, it might be important. Let’s take it with us for now.” 

“Sounds about right. My mom didn’t want any of my dad's belongings in the house, so I brought everything out here. You know, for when he gets back.” Larry hummed, pulling up his hoodie over his head once more. Sal nodded and then pulled out a white box from his pocket. 

“What’s in this?” 

“I dunno, man. It belonged to my dad. Some sort of puzzle box, I think. Couldn’t ever figure out how to open it.” Larry admitted with a shrug. Looking at it a bit more, I noticed something was off..

“Hey..there’s a piece missing!” I pointed out, pointing at a small hole where something was obviously supposed to fit. Larry looked at it and let out a surprised huff.

“Yeah, you’re right. Never noticed that before.” 

“You mind if we take this too?” Sal asked and Larry just responded with a shake of his head. “Sweet.” He then held out the box to me, which I raised a brow at. 

“What, am I your inventory slot?” I asked jokingly as I took it from him and slipped it into my pocket. 

Sal just shrugged, his eye lighting up with amusement. “With the pocket dimension you call the pockets in that jacket of yours, you might as well be.” 

“Thanks. It’s a new line of jackets called “The Void” you should try it out, just climb in.” I shot back, and Larry snickered, deciding to join in.

“Finally, the sweet release of death.” Larry joked, and the three of us broke out into laughter.

When we settled down, Larry headed over to the ladder and began to climb. “Let’s head back inside, I'm freezing my nuts off out here.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! This is just a reminder to never touch a dissociating person without their consent, regardless of how deep they are into their dissociation! Don't be like Blank! 
> 
> I needed a bit of wholesome bonding between Blank and one of the boys, and by god I will fuckin get it if it's the last thing I fuckin do-


	6. The Wretched {3}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sal and Blank start their investigation in the apartments by talking to Miss Rosenberg.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning! This chapter does have some slight misgendering for Blank and Sal so please be aware of that!

When we returned inside, we shed our winter clothes and stretched out a bit. It was always warmer down in the basement than the rest of the apartment, so it was a welcome change. Sal looked a bit eager to get started, heading for the door, a tight grip on his Gear Boy.

“I’m gonna go have a look around and see if I can find anything out.” He explained.

“Hey, I’ll go with you then. Maggot’s not supposed to be home until later so I’m pretty much free.” I said with a grin as I followed after him, and he nodded his agreement. We looked over at Larry, and he just waved us off. 

“Okay, Sounds good. I sort of have to stay here and take care of my mom. She’s super sick.” The brunet explained, and I raised my brow at him.

“Lisa’s still sick..? Poor thing..Let me know if there’s anything you need, I can make soup.” I said as I stood to follow Sal out. “Just give us a call over the walkie talkies.” 

The brunet smiled, nodding a bit. “Thanks guys. That means a lot to me.” I shot the boy a smile back and closed the door after us. Then it was just me and Sal in the empty living room.

“So, where to, Sally Face?” I asked with a dopey grin and he hummed to think a bit, before he continued walking. I followed him at a brisk pace out of the apartment. Next to the vending machine sat Chug, who I gave a small wave to as he waited for the snack machine guy. 

We passed by and made our way into the elevator, letting the doors close before picking a floor to go to.

“I should ask Megan if she knows anything about the supposed demon.” Sal suggested and I nodded, not really knowing who this “Megan” was. “Hopefully she shows herself today..”

“What, is she a ghost?” I asked jokingly. Only to add to my own horror when Sal nodded that I was right. “Aw dude, I was kidding!” 

Sal snickered at my whine and I just responded with a playful nudge, leaving him to rub at his shoulder. 

“So do you wanna go directly there or take a detour? Maybe check on some of the residents?” I suggested. “There’s always Ms.Rosenberg on floor one,she’s always good for a story.” 

“Do you think it would help?” Sal asked, looking over at the elevator buttons. “But I get what you mean. She’s been here for quite a while, maybe she’s seen something.” 

“Exactly. If anyone would know it would probably be the older people.” I reached over and hit the button for floor one and the elevator began it’s ascension upwards. 

“Have you seen the new security cameras?” Sal asked after a bit, and I nodded.

“Yeah, apparently Mr. Addison added them after the Mrs.Sanderson incident.” I shivered a bit. “Thank goodness me and Mags weren’t here for that. That must have been some welcoming party, huh Sally Face?” Sal let out a huff of laughter, crossing his arms as he waited.

“No kidding..” He murmured as the elevator pulled to a stop and the doors slowly slid open. We stepped out onto the quiet floor, the only noises being the occasional  _ Whrrr… _ of the surveillance camera as they scanned the empty hallway. We turned and headed over to Ms. Rosenberg’s door, and Sal knocked politely. After a few seconds, an elderly woman’s voice called back to us.

“Who is it?” She sounded tired, that’s for sure.

“Hello, Miss Rosenberg. It’s Sal and Blank. From upstairs.” Sal answered, shoving his hands into his pockets. 

“Is there something you both want?” Miss Rosenberg asked back and Sal nodded, regardless of if she could see him or not.

“We just wanted to talk to you a bit.” 

“To me? Oh alright, come on in then. The door is open.” Miss Rosenberg called back and I reached over and turned the knob,opening the door and stepping in. It was nicely decorated, and just as quiet as the hallway. In the middle of the room sat Ms.Rosenberg, rocking back and forth in her chair. When she noticed us, she looked up and gave us a small, wrinkle covered smile.

“Hello there, Sally. Ah, this must be your little boyfriend, isn’t he? It’s nice to see you,Blankie dear. What brings a young couple to see this old woman?” She said sweetly, and I rubbed at my arm uncomfortably.

“I’m not a guy, Miss Rosenberg..” I mumbled, and whether or not she heard me was left a mystery as Sal began to strike up a conversation.

“Hi Miss Rosenberg. We wanted to ask you a few things if that’s alright with you.” He asked politely, and Miss Rosenberg smiled once more.

“Ask away, children. I may not have much time left, but time is all I’ve got now.” She began and I groaned, settling down on the ground criss-cross applesauce style, grabbing the Gear Boy from Sal’s hand. He tossed me a look and let Miss Rosenberg continue on.

“Yes, time’s all I have and even that’ll soon slip away from me..Or maybe I’ve never really had a grasp on it at all...Such a strange concept isn’t it? Time… Sitting here alone…” 

Slowly I began to tune the old lady out, looking at the Gear Boy as it began to buzz and beep quietly in my hands. Was it catching onto the picture in my pocket? Surely that must be it…

_ I wonder if this thing could pick up on that demon too.. _ I pondered to myself, watching as the screen melted together into a scribble of separate lines and blurred pixels.  _ Then again...how does it pick up on the ghosts? Is it truly that powerful? _

“How long have you lived here??” Sal asked, which broke me out of my thoughts and I looked back up. 

“Long, indeed. Though it’s hard to say exactly.” Miss Rosenberg started, looking up at the ceiling as she tried to remember something.

“My old mind can barely hold onto even memories of yesterday anymore, let alone the distant past. I’m afraid my days are nearing end. Soon I will return to dust and my consciousness will merge with the great and mysterious nothing. A void that’s impossible for our little brains to wrap their heads around and trust me when I say I’ve tried...Yes, a powerful dreaded empty nothingness..”

It was like my brain was frazzled, trying to comprehend what she was saying,and I looked over to Sal, who was just nodding along. “Sal that sounds awesome. We should go out into the forest and decompose and merge with nothingness. We could make it a date.” I joked and the boy just barely hid a laugh, the tips of his ears turning a dull pink, which I grinned at. 

“Oh, i’m sorry sweeties, I’ve been rambling on again.” Rosenberg admitted, a bit of a chuckle in her raspy voice. “What was your question?”

“We wanted to know how long you’ve lived at Addison Apartments.” I said leaning forwards onto my knees. 

“Ah yes..You know, I do remember when the Addison's moved here, from overseas to construct this building.” She hummed, rocking in her chair once more. “Actually, this land belonged to my family first. But I made the decision to sell it to the Addison's. I had no need for it since I was the only one remaining.” 

“You were the only one remaining?” I asked and she nodded, continuing on with her story.

“I thought the company would be nice to have again. Someone to share the anguish of life with...I was young and desperate for a new beginning...What a foolish girl I was…”

“You regret selling it?” Sal asked.

“A life as old as mine is filled with regret, my dear. Though it all eventually becomes meaningless.” 

“What ever happened to the rest of the family? Do they live around town?” I asked and Rosenberg shook her head. 

“They’re gone.”

“Gone?”

“Time takes us all, Blankie.” Rosenberg hummed, looking towards the front door with a solemn expression. “Poor little Terrence is the last of his family...Oh, I suppose he’s not so little now but that’s how I see him, as that young boy with a twinkle in his eye and a head filled with dreams...” She scoffed, looking away. “Now look at him. He never leaves that godforsaken room.”

“Hey yeah, why does he stay locked away in there?” Sal pondered looking over at me for a suggestion, and I shrugged. 

“He went a little kooky after his family passed, if you ask me.” Rosenberg answered, looking back at her front door. “Boy was so wound up he was afraid of his own shadow.”

_ But was it really his shadow he was afraid of? Or what could have been lurking in it?  _ I thought to myself darkly, tuning out once more as Rosenberg went on in a bit more detail about Mr. Addison. I fumbled with the Gear Boy in my hands as I thought about it. Eventually, Sal cut her off another tangent and asked a new question.

“Have you ever seen any ghosts in the building?” 

“Ghosts? Why in heavens would you worry about such a thing as ghosts? You’re such a sweet couple,” I winced but let her continue on. “You both almost remind me of myself from another time. Do old Rose a favor and enjoy your lives while they last. Don’t be consumed by the allure of death and it’s many secrets. I know, yes, yes, it’s quite tempting and very easy to get pulled in.” She continued on, and I slowly stood up, Gear Boy in hand. 

“Thank you, Miss Rosenberg. That was very enlightening. But we gotta go...prepare food for the Johnson’s!” I lied, grabbing Sal by the arm and heading for the door. “We’ll see you later!”

As the door closed I let go of Sal’s arm, leaning against the wall as a shiver coursed through my body. “Ugh..”

“You alright, Blank?” Sal asked, a concerned tone in his voice and I nodded. 

“I’ll be fine, just too much death talk and being called a guy for me. Why don’t we go check on Megan now?” I suggested and headed over to the elevator. Sal nodded his agreement and followed after, hitting the button for the fifth floor.

The ride was a bit longer, but eventually it opened onto the decrepit old fifth floor that had been abandoned to the tests of time.

“It’s over here.” Sal said as we exited the elevator once more. I could sense this was going to become a trend with this little gaggle. He led us over to the far right apartment and turned the doorknob, stepping in calmly.

“We should probably call Larry up, that way he can meet Megan too.” Sal said as he reached for his walkie talkie. “Larry you there?”

“I’m here, what’s up?” The brunet’s voice broke over the static, and I grinned. 

“Can you come up to 504? We’re waiting up here for you.” Sal asked, leaning against the wall. 

“Wow, that sounded threatening.”

“Shut up, Blank.” Sal shot back with his own snicker, and Larry’s voice broke over the radio once more.

“Sure. My mom just took her medicine so she’ll be passed out for a while anyways. I’ll be right up.” 

The walkie talkie clicked off, and we were left in silence once more. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sal Fisher and Blank Degras call you up to room 504 and breaks your legs ASMR


	7. The Wretched {4}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After an attempt to talk to Megan, The Ghoul Trio split up to cover more ground about Addison Apartments.
> 
> Well,more like Blank and Larry dick around while Sal actually does things offscreen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes I made Buzzfeed Unsolved jokes because a couple of cute Larry cosplayers on Tiktok did so. Don't fuckin' @ Me

It was only a few minutes' wait before Larry walked into the abandoned apartment, looking a little skeptical of why he was called all the way up here.

“So, what is it you wanted to show me?” Larry asked, and Sal tore himself away from the wall, walking over and pointing back to the bathroom. 

“Come on, she’s in the bathroom.” I raised my eyebrow but didn’t question it. Larry however, decided that he had to try and voice his question, which he was quickly shushed for as Sal walked off into the bathroom. I snickered a bit at his pout and gave him a small pat on the shoulder as I passed to follow the blue haired boy. 

Strangely, the bathroom up here was no worse looking than the one in the standard apartments. A clean enough looking toilet- drained of water, a mirror with a few scratches, and was that..

“Holy shit…” Larry gasped, walking into the bathroom himself. “It’s a Jacuzzi tub!” The tall boy scrambled over, taking a seat on the rim of the tub. It looked a little worn from time and it most likely wouldn’t produce water, but it was definitely a strange sight. 

“Guys this is the best place we’ve ever...cleared?” He looked around and I snickered at his expression and walked over and joined him, balancing myself as I sat.

“Stayed?” I added and Larry nodded.

“Ghostbusted..?” the brunet finished and Sal let out a loud groan, slapping his mask with his hand, which we both laughed at a bit. Eventually, the pigtailed boy shushed us again. “What?”

“Just wait a minute...Megan? Are you here?” Nothing followed Sal’s voice, so he spoke again, gingerly. “Hello...? I wanted you to meet my friends, Larry and Blank.”

Still no response. 

“I don’t think there’s anything in here, dude.” Larry said honestly, standing from his spot on the tub. 

“She might be afraid, she can be pretty shy. Though, I haven’t been able to get her to come out in a while now. I hope she’s okay…” Sal said quietly to himself. Through the dim light I could tell he was genuinely worried. 

“So you come up to this moldy bathroom to talk to a dead girl? How often do you come up here?” Larry asked and I elbowed him in the side. “Ow!”

“Pick your words better, dumbass!” He grumbled and rubbed at his ribs, but it seems Sal didn’t take any offense to the question. 

“I’ve been able to talk to her a few times, but like I said before she hasn’t been around lately.” Sal explained, looking around the room a bit curiously. “I’m not crazy, Larry. I’m going to prove this to you.”

Larry frowned a bit. “Hey, I never said you were crazy, man. As weird as this is, I believe you, okay?” He walked a little bit forwards, so he was standing in front of Sal. “You’re my best bud, and if this helps at all with finding my dad I'm all for it.” 

“I just...really thought we’d be able to see her today. I just had this feeling…” the pigtailed boy trailed off.

“Hey, you know who you should talk to? Todd.” Larry said after a bit of thinking, and I raised my brow. Hopping up from the tubside I walked over to join the conversation.

“That ginger guy with the stoner parents in 202?” I asked and Larry nodded, pointing over at me.

“Exactly, Cupcake! He’s probably the smartest kid I know AND he’s also into this supernatural stuff like you dorks are.I bet he could help somehow.” Larry explained and I huffed a little at the nickname.

“Todd? Really? Huh, I never expected him to believe in all that stuff. He always seemed so..” 

“Normal? Rational?”

“Heh, yeah. I guess so. Well, alright. I’ll go talk to him and see what I can find out.” Sal said with a nod, before he turned to me. “Are you coming too?”

“I’ll pass. I’m gonna head back downstairs with Larry. But say hi to Todd for me, will ya?” I said with a grin, and Sal gave a small thumbs up. “And ring us if something happens.”

“Will do.” The blue haired boy nodded, and headed out. I then turned to Larry with a grin. 

“Your turn to lead, navigator. But can we head to my apartment first? I need to grab something.” I asked as we left the abandoned apartment and made our way into the elevator.

The brunet gave me a nod. “What is it?” I hit the button for the fourth floor and the doors closed as the elevator made its descent.

“I’ll show you when we get there.”

The ride back to 404 was short, and eventually I unlocked my apartment and stepped inside. “Feel free to come in if you want.” I said over my shoulder as I headed towards the kitchen.

“Huh, I don’t think i’ve ever been inside your place.” Larry admitted as he walked in. “You live with your brother, right?” He looked around a bit, following me into the kitchen as I began to rummage around. 

“Yeah, he’s usually never home though.” I hummed as I pulled a container of salt out of the cabinets. Larry looked a little confused, raising one of his eyebrows as I scavenged the kitchen for a small bottle, cheering in success when I found it. I reached into a drawer and pulled out a sage incense and lit it, letting the smoke cleanse the inside of the bottle.

“What’s the salt for?” I jumped at the question and rubbed hesitantly at my neck.

“Ah..well..You might think it’s a little dumb, but I heard that salt is good for protection against harmful spirits…” I admitted. “I figured it couldn’t hurt to make it so we’d be safe if it turns out the demon is real..Like I said, it’s dumb.” 

“What? Dude I’d never call you dumb for wanting to be cautious.” The brunet said, watching as I funneled the salt into the small bottle, popping the cork into it. “In fact, I think it’s kinda rad that you’d plan ahead for that sort of thing.” 

I sent him a small smile as I reached for a nearby tea candle, lighting it as well and sealing the bottle shut with the melted wax. “Thanks Larry, It means a lot to me. Just one should be fine for now, but I’ll make us some more in the future. Now let's go check on Lisa.” 

Larry grinned and led the way back to the basement, and I sent him a peace sign as I pointed over to his room. “I’ll wait for ya.” He jokingly sent one back and headed towards his mom’s room.

It slowly became telling how much being alone scared me now. Sitting on Larry’s couch and looking around just barely hid my growing paranoia.

_ The Red-Eyed Demon...It has to be a coincidence, right?  _ I thought to myself as I leaned back.  _ A nightmare made because of stress? But what have I done recently to be stressed? I mean, besides losing all my memories and having to start anew in the middle of Fuckberg nowhere, have I really been stressed?  _

I chuckled at my own joke, and was wrenched from my thoughts when the door opened and Larry walked in.

“Sorry that took so long.” He walked over to the stereo, turning it down a bit before he turned on some music, slumping over in his bean bag. Sanity’s Fall began to flow from the speakers and I smirked. Classic Larry.

“Don’t worry about it, Lar. How is she?” I asked and he groaned a bit, resting his head back on the wall behind him.

“She’s doing better. Still asleep, but at least her temperature is down.” He breathed a sigh of relief and I chuckled.

“She’s lucky to have just a good son.” 

“Nah, i’m a trash fire.” Larry hummed and I furrowed my eyebrow, crawling off the couch and over towards him. 

“Hey no, that’s the one thing we’re not going to do is self doubt.” I pushed my finger against his chest. “You’re a good person, Larry Johnson. And you’re my friend.” 

“I don’t like how you said that.” He joked, and I pushed myself up so I was crouched over him.

“You’re my friend!”

“Why are you yelling at me, you’re my friend-”   
  
“YOU’RE MY FRIEND!” I shouted and tackled him, which he only responded with throwing up his arms in defense and shouting ‘Oh god!’ before we dissolved into a pile of laughter. 

“Alright, Alright I get it Burrito, now get off already!” He groaned after a bit, trying to push me off. I stuck my tongue out at him jokingly. “You’re really heavy for someone who looks like they’d blow away at the slightest breeze!” 

  
“Nah i’m good, thanks for the offer though.” I joked and eventually he did shove me off, which left me a cackling mess on the floor. 

The sound of someone clearing their throat, broke me out of my laughter, and I looked over to see Sal standing in the doorway, a smug aura around him. “Is this a bad time?”

“Not at all, Sally.” Larry said from his place on the bean bag, looking up. “Did you need something?”

“Yeah, me and Todd are working on the Gear Boy now. I came down to ask if I could borrow the antenna from your police scanner.” The masked boy pointed over at the scanner sitting on Larry’s dresser.

The metalhead raised his brow. “Uh, yeah sure. I guess that’s alright.” 

Sal let out a whoop as he walked over and began to disconnect the antenna from the scanner.

“Good luck, Sally Face. Look at you protagonizin’. You’re doin’ the lord’s work so we don’t have to.” I joked and he laughed, flipping me the bird back. 

“I’ll be back shortly.” He said, before pointing up towards the ceiling. “After It’s done I'm gonna do a test run back at the treehouse. You still got that picture?” I nodded and pulled the framed photo out of my jacket pocket.

“One braces geek Larry, my liege.” I handed it over to him and Larry rolled his eyes, kicking at me playfully with his foot. “Hey, you didn’t ask for it back so I don’t wanna hear it!”

“Many thanks, court jester.” Sal joked back as he headed out the door.

“I’ll be back!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know not much has happened, but i'm trying my best to make sure Blank gets adequate time with both boys! Don't worry, things will pick up after the Wretched chapters because i'll be back to having to fend for myself for content-


	8. The Wretched {5}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Super Gear Boy is here! Featuring the high tech support for ghosts! Time to search around!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New chapter time! I know The Wretched is running super long, but bare with me babes! Next chapter should be the last for this arc, then it's back to fending for myself!

“Alright, i’ve got it.” 

I looked up from where I was fidgeting with my pocket knife to see Sal walk through Larry’s bedroom door, the Gear Boy in hand. It looked chunkier than usual, Todd must have had to add new parts. Larry hopped up from his beanbag and headed over, a dopey grin on his face. 

“Say hello to the Super Gear Boy.” The blue haired boy held it up and Larry gave a low whistle. 

“Woah, Todd made that? That’s pretty awesome, like- Hey wait..is that my walkie talkie?” Larry asked, looking to the back of the SGB that was thicker set then normal.

“Oh, yeah. He needed some parts for the upgrade. I hope you don’t mind, I can get us some new ones.” Sal explained, holding up the SGB so that he could gesture to the upgrades.

“I guess we’ll just have to share one for now, until we get new ones.” I added, pulling my walkie talkie out of my pocket and holding it up. 

“Damn..” Larry sighed, running a hand through his hair, before he smiled again. “Well, that’s okay. Hopefully it will help to find out more about these ghosts and my curse.”

Sal breathed a sigh of relief, before he looked back down the SGB, and patted his pocket. From it, he pulled the picture of Larry and his family, before he looked towards the basement doors. The SGB made a horrible screeching noise, and we all winced at it, and eventually it settled down. The screen was flashing a multitude of colors, and Sal pocketed it,heading for the back door.

“I’m gonna go test this thing out in the treehouse.”

“Do you want us to come with you?” I asked and he shook his head as he began to put on his winter clothing.

“Nah, I’ve seen this thing pull up a ghost but I don’t have a good feeling about this photo. It was strong enough to get signals off the normal Gear Boy, so it’s gotta be something way stronger than a normal ghost.” Sal stated, popping on his earmuffs. “I shouldn’t be more then a few minutes.”

“Well..alright. Just be careful. If you’re not back in 5 minutes i’m assuming the worst and coming to kick your corpse’s ass.” 

Sal let out a loud snort, covering his mask with one hand and tossing me a thumbs up with the other as he headed out the door. I grinned as he walked out the door, turning towards the brunet in the room.

“And as soon as he comes, he’s gone.” I hummed, doing a dramatic bow, which Larry rolled his eyes at. “Like a businessman in a brothel.” That one got a loud wheeze out of him, and my grin only grew larger as he grabbed onto his stereo to stay standing.

A few minutes passed and Sal walked back into the apartments, looking a little shaken up, his eyes widened and his breathing a bit choppy.

“Sally Face? Sal, What happened?” I hopped off the couch and headed over, resting my hand on the shorter boy's shoulder. He looked up at me, and after a bit he nodded. “Did you see a ghost? What happened?”

“It...certainly wasn’t normal..” Sal explained as I began to take off his winter clothes. “I think it picked up on something that died out there..nothing too important..Like an animal or something.” He shrugged off his hoodie and I hung it on the nearby coat rack with his earmuffs. “It just spooked me a bit.” 

“Well, at least we know it works now.” Larry hummed as he walked over. “We should do a run through of the complex, see if we can pick anything up.”

“You think that will help?” Sal asked, looking down at the SGB he held tightly in his hands.

“Even if it doesn’t, it gives us a leg to stand on, right? We can get some notes that this building does have supernatural activity.” I thought outloud, and Sal tilted his head.

“Like hotspots?”

“Precisely, Mr.Face.” 

That’s how all three of us found ourselves roaming the empty halls of Addison Apartments with hopes of finding something that could start our true investigation. 

The first place we found was Larry’s kitchen, which sent the SGB off into a violent beeping fit. Sal fumbled with it a bit, before a small drawing appeared on the ground. It was a deep blue in color and consisted of multiple tiny circles connected by triangle shapes. Just as quick as it arrived, it flashed out of existence.

“What the fuck was that?!” Larry hissed, backing away from where the Super Gear Boy had summoned something up.

“No clue, it looked like some sort of symbol. “ Sal said after a bit, looking down at the Gear Boy as he fiddled with it. “It could have just been nothing..we’d better investigate further.”

The rest of the basement floor had been clean of any supernatural activity-which Larry breathed a sigh of relief for. It also seemed that the elevator was safe. When we reached the first floor I was hesitant to return to Ms.Rosenberg’s room.

“Sorry, I’ve had enough being called a guy and assumed in a relationship for one day, Sally Face. I’ll wait out here.” Larry raised a brow.

“She thinks you’re a dude?” He asked, and I nodded, crossing my arms as Sal knocked and entered the apartment.

“Then again, she thinks Sal’s a girl, so it’s not too far fetched.” 

“That’s true.” Larry finished, leaning next to the door of the apartment. “Ladies old as hell itself, so it’s not that surprising she can’t see that well. She’d probably think i’m a girl.”

“Oh Larry-Berry, you are the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen.” I joked and his face turned a dusty pink, and he reached over and elbowed me in the side.

“Ow! Heheh..” I snickered, rubbing at my sore ribs as Sal came back. “Heya shortstack, what’d ya find?”

“Nothing of real importance. I think the Super Gear Boy is glitching out.” He groaned, and I took it from his hands. “It might have been that thing from earlier.”

“No kidding, already?” I looked over it a bit, and nothing happened. No beeps, no buzzing, not even a screen change. “Looks okay to me..”

“What happened in there, dude?” Larry asked, concern evident in his voice.Sal just shook his head, pointing over towards the camera at the end of the hall. 

“I’ll tell you later. Let’s move up to the second floor.” Then he turned and headed towards the elevator and headed off. Larry and I shared a look of confusion but followed after him. 

Unsurprisingly, the second floor was just as quiet as the lobby. I took the SGB and handed it back to Sal, who did a quick sweep over the hallway. When he returned he just shook his head. 

“What if we checked Charley’s old place? Think we’d find anything?” Larry suggested, pointing at room 204. 

“Isn’t that the guy that killed someone?” I asked, and Larry nodded as we headed over to the door. Mr.Addison kept it unlocked, as there was really nothing in here you could steal. The place stunk to high hell, which was probably one of the reasons it couldn’t be rented out anymore.

“Let’s just get this over with..man, and I thought Larry’s room reeked.” I groaned as we walked in, Sal leading the way inside. It was musky and dank, clearly revealing how little care went into cleaning it. The short boy made quick work of scouring the room with the supernatural device, and when it beeped loudly in the middle of the room he gave a small fist bump to the air.

“We got one.” He pressed a few buttons and another symbol appeared on the ground. Much like the last one, it only stayed around for a few seconds, before it flashed into nothingness. 

  
  


“Another symbol..did that one look familiar to anyone?” I thought outloud. A chorus of ‘ **_No’_ ** filled the empty apartment and I sighed.

The third floor was empty, not a single interference from the Gear Boy, so we quickly moved up to the fourth floor. The hallway was clear, and the only apartments we had access to where Sal’s and I’s.

“Let’s check mine first. Maggot’s not home so he shouldn’t ask any questions.” I hummed and headed over to my apartment, unlocking it and shoving the door open. 

“Twice in one day. Way to invite us in, Mushroom.” Larry teased as he walked in, Sal following not far after him.

“Nice place.” Sal complimented as he began his rounds with the SGB. He headed through the kitchen first, and I breathed a sigh of relief when nothing got picked up. The living room was clean too, and I held out my hand for the Super Gear Boy when we reached Maggot’s room. 

“I don’t think he’d appreciate it if I let two guys go into his room, so I’ll handle this one.” I explained as I pushed open the door, leaving the boys in the living room. 

Maggot’s room was not nearly what I was expecting, that’s for sure. It was painted just the same as the rest of the rooms, but it was filled with some personal items. Band posters on the walls, a couple of stray knives, some cute pictures of both of us together, and what looked to be a giant pile of stuffed animals on the bed in the corner. 

I looked down at the Super Gear Boy as I walked around the room. It was still for a good portion of the room, but it let out a small blip when I got close to the pictures. But after that it was just..quiet. 

“Well, that was a waste of time..” I grumbled to myself, opening the bedroom door and heading back out.

Larry had made himself at home, taking a seat on the couch while Sal poked around the room, inspecting around the TV and cabinets containing VCR tapes and CDs. 

“They have a lot of stuff in here. What does Maggot do again?” Sal asked himself, and I let out a loud hum.

“I’m not really sure, he does stay out for long periods of time though.” Sal let out a sharp screech, which tore a laugh from both Larry and I. 

“Not cool.” He grumbled as I walked over and handed him back the Super Gear Boy.

“Sorry, Sorry!~” I chortled, before I pointed over to my room. “Come on, we can check in there last.” 

“Already inviting us back to your bedroom, eh?” Larry joked and I simply rolled my eyes at him. 

“You’re right, I gotta go hide the corpse first. Thanks for reminding me, Johnson.” 

Larry let out a loud snort as we all headed into my room. It was the exact same as how I left it, clothes on the floor, photos of our little trio tacked to the walls and a messy bedside table covered in empty juice boxes.

“Nice. Homey.” Larry complimented, taking a running start and flinging himself onto my bed.

“Thanks, Homie.” 

Sal stepped carefully over the clothes and stepped around with the Super Gear Boy. Everything was going great.

Well, until the Gear Boy let out that familiar loud screech indicating it picked up on something.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SPOOKY SCARY GHOSTIE KINS SEND SHIVERS DOWN YOUR SPINE.


	9. The Wretched {6}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The ghoul hunt continues on with the Ghostbusting trio as they try to figure out the mystery of Addison Apartments and Larry's Curse.
> 
> Also they meet Gizmo and Blank almost cries.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I know I said this might be the last chapter of The Wretched, but this one was running a bit too long for my liking, so there's going to be ONE more chapter in this arc-
> 
> God that's gonna be fun-

The only noises that kept the room from being totally silent was the loud beeping and screeching of the Super Gear Boy held tightly in Sal’s hands. No one said anything, and by the sounds of it no one made the attempt to breathe.

“Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit…” I breathed, watching as the screen of the SGB switched through colors like nobody's business. “Come on it could have been anywhere else, why my room?!”

Sal gave no answer, and instead began to fumble with it much like he had in the past. Slowly an image similar to the drawings back in Larry’s kitchen and Charley’s room appeared on the floor. Except..this time it didn’t disappear instantly. For maybe a split-second it sat untouched, before a figure began to emerge. A hand a first, which slowly became an arm and then two arms. They began to pull themselves up and out of the symbol.

Before it could continue forming any larger, Sal shut the SGB off, forcing the symbol and the figure coming out of it to disappear. Almost like it was never there in the first point.

The silence was deafening.

“...Well Larry it looks like I am moving in after all.” I tried to joke, but it only fell on an awkward pause. 

“We should continue on. We can check my place next.” Sal said after a bit, and I nodded hesitantly. What if something like this was in his room too? There was already the one in Larry’s kitchen too, so what would we do then? I reached my hand into my pocket and grabbed onto the small glass bottle of salt and gave it a firm squeeze. We would be fine. I would make sure that we would be fine.

“If you need to, you can absolutely stay over. Ma wouldn’t mind.” Larry said after we exited the apartment, and I gave him a sincere smile.

“Thanks, Larry-Berry. I appreciate that.” He gave a toothy grin and we continued on towards Sal’s place. The short boy unlocked the door, and pushed it open, giving us a joking bow. 

“This way, your highnesses.” He was trying to break the tension from earlier, which I appreciated. He then squinted his eyes a bit. "Highnesses? Highnessi? fuckin- Royalty."

I rolled my eyes and gave him a bow back as I passed, which he snickered at a bit.

**_-_ **

The Fisher apartment was clean, nicely decorated and had a nice, homey feel to it. But that wasn’t what caught my attention. Instead, it was the chunky, auburn cat that was sitting up on the couch watching the TV intently.

“Holy shit..” I whispered as I walked over, and the sound of Sal still laughing followed after me. “What the hell, Fisher Price, you didn’t tell me you had a cat!” The cat craned it’s head to look at me, it’s eyes focusing on me as I walked over.

“Yeah, that’s Gizmo.” The blue haired boy explained, closing the door after we all were inside. “He’s pretty cool.” he walked over and pet the cat’s head, which got a loud purr from him.

“Was he watching TV?” Larry asked as Sal pulled his hand back, and the shorter male nodded.

“He likes to watch action movies.” He replied, turning his attention to the SGB. “I’ll do a walk around, I'm pretty sure my dad is still working.” He then turned and headed into the kitchen. I hesitantly walked around and took a seat on the couch next to Gizmo, who’s gaze followed me around the room.

The cat watched me for a bit, before he slowly pushed himself up to standing. Slowly, he strutted his fat butt over the couch and into my lap, collapsing onto his back and looking up to me with a loud purr. 

If i’ve cried for anything today, it would be now. My eyes began to water as Gizmo wiggled on his back across my lap, his eyes drifting back to the TV. “Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god..” I whimpered, and I could hear Larry start to laugh at me. “Oh god, fuck Larry I’ve been chosen, I’ll see you at my funeral.” 

“Here lies Applesauce. They got sat on by a cat and fucking died.” Larry wheezed out, sitting on the other side of the couch. “They’ve survived total amnesia and the cat is what got them.” 

“Oi fuck off!” I threw back, reaching over and shoving him, which only made him laugh harder. Gizmo’s purring only got louder as I reached my free hand down and began to scratch behind his ears. “Oh goodness, you’re just a giant baby aren’t you?” my only answer was a loud  _ Mmrrp! _

Sal exited the kitchen after a bit, and began his walk to the bedrooms, but he stalled, turning and looking at Larry and I with a confused head tilt. “Blank, are you about to cry?”

“No, shut up!” I sniffled back, covering my face with my sweater sleeves. “I don’t remember having a pet, okay?” 

Larry’s face quickly shifted from laughter to worried. “Oh shit, Blank I’m sorry I didn’t realize-”

“Dude, don’t even worry about it.” I hummed as I rubbed at my eyes. “I’m just fuckin with you.”

There was a collective sigh of relief from both boys, which I laughed at a bit. It really did mean the world to me that they felt the need to apologize for hurting my feelings, though.

“Well, I’ll go check the bedrooms and then we can head up to the last floor.” Sal suggested, and headed over towards the other side of the apartments, pushing open the door and walking inside the first door. 

**_-_ **

Surprisingly, the Fisher apartment was free of supernatural activity (minus whatever human sentience Gizmo had, of course.) And we were back on our way to the 5th floor.The elevator doors pulled open once more, and we stepped out on the abandoned floor once more.

“Let’s check the other apartment before we go try and talk to Megan.” Sal suggested, pointing towards the right side of the hallway. “See if we can’t find any more of those symbols.”

“Wicked. I’m gonna head back in there and wait for you both then.” I added with a smile. I then turned and headed to Megan’s apartment. The apartment was still empty, which I was grateful for, and I made my way into the bathroom.

It was quiet, but I wasn’t surprised. “Hey Megan.” I called into the room as I walked in. “It’s me, Blank. I visited with my friends Sally and Larry earlier.” at first, I wasn’t sure why I was talking to a potentially empty room. I guess I thought that if I was a little ghost child, I’d like to have someone talk to me? 

I stepped further in, taking a seat on the rim of the jacuzzi tub. “I don’t mean to scare you if I do, I just wanted to meet you. Sal says you’re a pretty nice girl.” If I was honest with myself, I couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched. I continued on. “You’ve probably been up here for so long, are you lonely?” I looked around the room once more.

“I’d be lonely..but you don’t have to be anymore. I’ll come up and visit you every once in a while, is that okay?” 

Silence. 

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

“Who are you talking to?” I screeched as I flailed back into the tub, looking up and over at who spoke. Sal and Larry stood there, Sal with a hand on his hip and a confused look in his eyes and Larry who was doubled over laughing, gripping at the side of the sink to prevent himself from falling to the ground. 

“I was talking to myself!” I grumbled, pulling myself out of the tub. “Stop laughing at me!” 

  
“You fuckin-” Larry wheezed. “You fuckin’ flailed like a DUCK!” 

“Are you okay?” Sal asked genuinely, walking over and giving me a hand. I could tell he wanted to laugh too, but he was holding himself back.

I grumbled, standing and rubbing my back that had hit the back of the tub. “I’ll be fine..did you find any more symbols?” 

The blue haired boy nodded. “We found one in the hall and one in the last apartment. I think that’s all of them in the building.” He held up the SGB, which was practically screaming that there was supernatural activity around. “Let’s try and talk to Megan now that we have this.” 

The blue haired boy walked back to the middle of the bathroom and held out the screeching SGB. He pressed the buttons to activate it, but nothing happened. No symbol, no ghost, not even a wisp.

“Damn it..” He grumbled, trying the machine again. Zip. Nodda. Nothing happened.

“Dude, is it messing up again?” Larry asked, walking forwards and looking down at it with a raised brow. “You might need to run that thing back to Todd. Come on, let’s go.”

**-**

“It’s strange, it doesn’t seem like anything’s broken..” Todd murmured as he looked over the Super Gear Boy. We all sat around the ginger’s room, Sal on the floor next to the desk, Larry on the bed and I leaning against his iron filing cabinet.

“It’s been picking up everything else, right?” He asked and Sal answered him with a nod. “Then it must be the connection with Megan then.” Todd then turned to his computer and began to type something. 

“Speaking of Megan, I found something interesting. It’s a missing person case from 1987. Megan Holmes, age 7. Lived in Addison Apartments with her parents Luke and Stacy Holmes.” He began to explain, waving us over. “Looks like it may be your little friend from upstairs. She must be the daughter that Greg- The guy from my bathroom- was telling us about.” He swiped his mouse over a picture and clicked it, pulling it up full screen. 

“The guy from your bathroom..?” I mumbled, but was ignored as the ginger continued. 

“The stories line up, right? Well, here’s where it gets weird again: there’s an update to the report, one day after the original was filed. Says the girl was found dead in Wendigo Lake a few miles south from here. Her parents too.” 

“Holy shit..” I mumbled, looking over the picture. Fuck, she was only seven..I winced as Todd continued reading off the missing persons report.

“Says they had been fishing and fell into the river and drowned. Some kind of freak accident or mudslide or something.” 

“That’s definitely her..” Sal hummed, looking at the picture himself. “Wait a second..I’ve seen that necklace before, I know I have!” He pointed towards the small cross necklace around the little girl’s neck. “She’s never wearing it when I talk to her, but I’ve definitely seen it somewhere else.”

“Do you think that’s why she’s not showing up?” I asked, crossing my arms as I pulled away from the computer. “Maybe because she’s a kid, she can’t come out without something to channel? Does that make any sense?” 

“That actually makes a lot of sense, Blank!” Sal clapped his hands, pointing over at me excitedly. “It’s something that she had a connection to when she was alive.” 

I blushed a bit at the blue haired boy's excitement, rubbing at my neck sheepishly. “Aww geez..”

Larry snickered at me, and I pouted, crossing my arms once more. 

“Now I just gotta remember where the hell I saw that thing..” Sal mumbled as he headed for the door quickly. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sal being excited and happy gives me 10 more years of living. My crops are watered and my animals fed.


	10. The Wretched {Finale}

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Ghoul Trio find the necklace and Talk to Megan and then more shit happens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is, the final part of the Wretched! I hope you guys enjoy!
> 
> Next few chapters will be all original content, so stay tuned!

I quickly followed after the blue haired boy, waving for Larry as I did so.

  
“Do you have an idea of where it could be?” I called forwards, and Sal turned, walking backwards through the room towards the door. He gave a swift nod as he did so, reaching for the door and pulling it open.

“Where do you go to look for something that’s lost?” He asked as we made our way into the elevator. He didn’t give us time to answer as he shoved the keycard into the slot for the basement. “The lost and found~” 

I giggled a bit at his excitement as the elevator began to descend. Larry gave him his own, tooth grin. “You’ve got this all planned out, don’t cha dude?”

“Damn straight.” Sal gave a thumbs up as the metal doors slinked open, and he made a beeline towards the cardboard box in the corner. “If it’s not in here, I have no fuckin idea.” He sunk down and began to dig through the box of junk.

“Let’s see...Chug’s spare hat, a pen, an extra key to room 404 I’m taking that…” He mumbled as he searched. “Blah, Blah, more Blah and Blah...aha!” He held up the golden cross in triumph. “I knew I saw this necklace somewhere!” 

I gave him a clap, which Larry joined in with as Sal stood up. He gave a joking bow back, and we exploded into another round of giggles. 

“That was so fuckin stupid.” I coughed out as we all came down from our laughter, and Sal snickered a bit more. “Come on, let’s go see Megan.”

**-**

For what seemed like the 5th time today, we entered the dirty and grim bathroom on the 5th floor once again. Sal had a tight grasp on both the Super Gear Boy and Megan’s necklace as we passed the threshold. 

I took my seat on the tub once more as Larry and Sal stood in front of it. “Okay, work your magic whenever you’re ready, dude.” The brunet hummed, leaning back against the sink. He wasn’t sarcastic about it, but his tone still had an air of disbelief still in it.

Sal brushed it off and set down Megan’s necklace, stepping away from it before he began to fiddle with the SGB. The SGB began it’s annoying song of beeping and screeching as he did so. 

“Megan? Are you here with us?” He asked, setting down the SGB. “These are my friends, Larry and Blank. We have some questions to ask you.”

What started out as a red puddle on the floor slowly pieced itself together into the form of a child, until it slowly began to form flesh and skin. It happened in a split second, but eventually there stood the small figure of the girl from the missing person’s report. There stood Megan.

“Hi Sally Face!” She said with a smile, waving at Sal.The look on Larry’s face was priceless, his eyes wide, eyebrows up and his mouth agape. I would have laughed if my own expression wasn’t his counterpart. 

“Holy fuck knuckles!” Larry exclaimed, and Megan furrowed her brows a bit, putting her tiny hands on her hips.

“That’s not a nice word, Larry.” 

Sal snickered a bit, waving his hand a bit. “You’ll have to forgive him, Megan. They’ve never seen a ghost before.” Megan giggled, shaking her head. 

“It’s okay, my daddy says bad words sometimes too.” She then clapped her hands together and turned, facing me. She let out a small gasp, and clapped her hands again, pointing up at me. 

“It’s you! You’re the pretty lady from earlier that came to talk to me!” She said, and I cringed a bit but nodded, giving her a small smile.

“I’m no lady, but yeah..I’m Blank, it’s nice to meet you, Megan.” The little girl gave me a smile back, and luckily didn’t question me. 

“Megan, where have you been, lately?” Sal asked, and the ghost turned, raising her eyebrow a bit. 

“What do you mean? I’ve been here the entire time.” 

“Really..?” Sal questioned, tilting his head, confused. “I’ve been trying to reach you.” 

Megan hummed, clasping her hands together and thinking about it a bit. “I think..when you’re alive, you can’t see the other side.”

“The other side?”

“You mean like the spirit world?” I added, and Megan nodded with a silly grin. 

“Yeah! That’s where we all live! It’s just like this side, but a little different.” 

Sal nodded, and the conversation topic quickly changed.

“Do you know a man named Greg?” Sal asked and Megan’s brows furrowed again. She thought about it a bit, but eventually her face lit up with excitement.

“Oh! You mean mommy’s friend! I like Mr.Greg, He always brings me candy!” She giggled and Sal crossed his arms.

“Can you remember anything about him?” 

“Ummm...Just that he was nice and brought candy…” Megan hummed. She then snapped her fingers. “Oh! And my daddy didn’t like him very much, but I don’t know why.”

“Can you tell us more about your parents, Megan?” I asked, hopping off the tub and walking over to stand near Larry and Sal. The small ghost girl nodded once more.

“I miss my mommy...She doesn’t really talk anymore.”

“What about your dad?” Sal asked and Megan let out a huff, crossing her tiny arms across her chest. 

“Daddy scares me now. He scares everyone here..” She frowned, shaking her head.”But he wasn’t always like that...He used to be nice like mommy.”

“What happened?” The blue haired boy urged her on.

“I remember they had a fight and then he was sad...Then his sadness turned into angriness.” I winced at her words. She looked at me with a curious look. “What’s wrong, Blankie?” 

“Nothing, it’s..it’s nothing.” I waved her off, and quickly changed the topic. “Do you remember your last days?”

“I don’t know, it’s all blurry now.” She admitted. 

“Were you fishing at Lake Wendigo?” 

“Huh?” She looked genuinely confused. “No, I’ve never been fishing before. But my daddy went sometimes with Mr. Johnson.” That snapped Larry out of his daze and he quickly joined the conversation.

“Wait, Jim Johnson?”

Megan smiled at him. “Yeah, how did you know that?”

“That’s my dad!” 

Megan paused for a bit, before she giggled again. “Oh, I guess our daddies were friends! Hehe..” 

Larry’s face became more desperate looking. “Can you tell me where he is? Do you know anything else about him?” He urged, putting his hands together. “Please..I need to know.”

Megan was quiet for a bit, before she frowned and shook her head.

“I’m sorry you lost your daddy...I don’t know where he is. I just know Mr. Johnson and my daddy went fishing a lot...I’m sorry.”

Larry’s face turned gloomy quickly. I put my hand on his shoulder sympathetically and he gave me a smile, sorrowful smile back. Sensing the discomfort in the room, Sal decided to change the subject, pointing down at the necklace on the floor.

“Is this your necklace?” He asked, and Megan’s face lit up quickly. 

“Hey! Yes! Where did you find that??” She answered, ghosting over and kneeling next to it. 

“It was downstairs, at the bottom of the lost and found box.” Sal answered and I shrugged.

“Kinda weird that it ended up down there.” I added, and Megan giggled, slowly grazing her hand over the cross emblem on the gold chain.

“My mommy gave me that necklace.” Her smile then slowly turned into a frown once more. “She was scared..she said it would protect me from the evil in the world.” 

“Do you know where she is now?” 

Megan pointed her finger towards the wall. “She’s in her bedroom. But she never listens to me anymore. I don’t think she can hear me…” 

“Do you think she-” Sal started, and was cut off when Megan gave out a scared squeak.

“Uh-oh!”

“What?” Sal asked and Megan shook her head.

“Daddy’s coming. He doesn’t like when I talk to people. I have to go. Bye bye!” 

“Wait, I-” Larry tried to stop her, but the ghost girl was already dissolving back into the ghastly puddle of flesh and blood, before she was no longer standing there at all.

“Shit.” Was all that Larry could say after she left, and Sal sighed, shaking his head.

“Yeah, they never seem to stick around long enough.”

“She seemed scared..You think she’ll be okay?” I mumbled out, and the shorter boy nodded. He then turned his head and looked at the wall.

“Well, we’re going to need to get into that bedroom...but it’s all boarded up.” He then turned to the greasy brunet. “Can you get some tools for us?” 

“Actually, David borrowed my mom’s crowbar and never gave it back. Would you mind going and getting it from him?” Larry asked, pushing his hands into his pockets. “I’ve asked him like three times now and he always has some excuse. Maybe you’ll have better luck.”

I wrinkled my nose at that. “Ugh..that guy’s such a creep. I’ll leave this one to you, Sally Face. You are the main character after all.” 

Sal rolled his eyes. “And what do you mean by that?”

“Oh come on, you’re the one doing the fetch quest, right? Totally the main character.” I answered with a grin, and that garnered a chuckle from both boys. 

“Alright, fine. I’ll see what I can do. You two stay up here then and try and loosen the boards.” The blue haired boy turned and headed out of the apartment, leaving only me and the metalhead alone.

After a bit, I turned and matched eyes with the brunet. He still seemed a bit upset from before, and rightfully so. The silence was deafening, so I decided to break it.

“You alright, man?” I asked, and Larry shook his head honestly. He reached a hand up and ran it through his hair with a loud sigh.

“I don’t know, dude. I..I was kind of hoping for a bit more information about my dad.” He mumbled, and I nodded my agreement.

“We still have a bit more investigating to do, I’m sure we’ll find something out, Larry. We just gotta have hope.” He gave me another sorrowful smile and tilted his head back, looking up at the ceiling. 

“Thanks, Coffee-Cake. You always know just what to say.” I snickered at him and rested my hands in the arms of my overalls. 

“Thanks, man. I gotta make up for my crippling self-doubt somehow.” That one ripped a snort from the boy, and we fell into a small bout of laughter, before the silence returned. But it wasn’t awkward like before. Instead, it was comforting. 

Eventually, Larry straightened up, and looked towards the door. “I don’t know why..but I have a bad feeling about all this…” 

“Do you think it could be the curse..?” I mumbled, and the brunet shrugged, and headed for the door. Confused, I watched him go. “Where are you going?”

“I’m gonna go see Todd. Wait up here for Sal, okay?” He looked back over his shoulder and I raised a brow but nodded. “Keep a tight grip on that charm you made, alright?”

“Um..Alright. I trust you, Larry.” 

He tossed me one last toothy smile and headed out the door, leaving me alone in the abandoned apartment.

**-**

It wasn’t long until Sal came back, the crowbar clenched tightly in his hand. I waved at him from next to the barred up door. He walked over and looked around confused.

“Where’s Larry?” he asked and I shrugged. 

“He said he was gonna go see Todd about something, but that was a while ago.” I then pointed to the barred up door. “Let’s get crackin’ eh, Shortstack?” 

Sal nodded, reluctant to go in without Larry but slowly he raised the crowbar and began to tug out the nails keeping the wood up. I stepped up to help, wrapping my arms around the planks of wood and tugging. It took a few minutes, but eventually all the planks laid on the floor and the door was free to open.

“You know, they could have just locked the door.” I groaned, rubbing at my arms and Sal snickered, setting down the crowbar and pushing the door open, stepping in. As soon as we stepped in, he pulled out the SGB. 

The room wasn’t nearly as empty as the previous room. The cracks in the wallpaper were still present, sure, but there was a torn up mattress leaning against the wall, a beaten to shit shelf and what looked to be a large, dark crawlspace in the back.

Okay, it wasn’t a lot, but it was more than a few fuckin’ newspapers on the floor. 

As we walked further into the room, the Super Gear Boy caught onto something as we passed by the mattress. 

“Ah yes, the mattress ghost- haunting of all the past mistakes.” I joked, earning a groan and a shove from Sal, which sent me into a small cackling fit as he began to fumble with the SGB. 

Eventually, a red puddle of ghostly...flesh? Appeared and took the form of a purple haired lady. That wasn’t the issue, no no, the issue was that her form was that over an obvious murder victim. Her throat was cut open and she was covered in stab wounds and bloody marks. Blood leaked from her eyes and out her open mouth like a broken faucet- always leaking and never going anywhere.

I forced back a gag and stuffed my mouth and nose inside the collar of my shirt.

“Stacy?” Sal asked, seemed not at all phased by the grizzly sight in front of him. “Are you okay?”

The ghost- Stacy- said nothing, before she let out a sharp cry and fused back with the mattress, leaving nothing behind her. The room was quiet once more and Sal turned his head to look back at the SGB, which no longer made a noise with a soft hum. 

“That’s strange..” 

“Yeah no shit, Sherlock.” I snarked a bit, but quickly winced at my own tone. “Ugh..sorry man. That wasn’t cool.” 

“Don’t worry about it.” Sal said honestly, waving me off before he turned and headed deeper into the room. I followed after him as he stopped in front of the hole in the wall, peering into it. 

“Hey, it looks like there’s another room back here.” He then began to crawl in, which I let out a loud guffaw at, following after him. 

“Dude, you don’t just crawl into creepy holes in the wall!” I whisper-shouted at him as we entered the new room.

“Maybe you don’t.”

“What does that MEAN?!”

The blue haired boy ignored my bitching, pulling out the SGB and continuing deeper into the room. This one was empty, except for one key element hanging from the rafters. 

“I-Is that a..” Yep. It was a noose at the end of the hallway. No chair under it, it just hung there. Stagnant. 

As we approached it, the Super Gear Boy began to go haywire- letting out loud beeps and shrieks as it picked something up from where the rope hung from the rafters. We shared a look, and nodded at each other. As Sal began to mess with the device, I reached into my pocket and grabbed a hold of the charm, pulling it out and keeping it tightly hidden in my palm. 

_ ‘Larry said to hold onto it..and I trust him.’ _ I thought to myself as Sal finished fumbling around. 

“He-Hello?” he stuttered out, revealing how nervous he actually was, and the SGB screeched, the screen turning from the mixed array of colors to the start screen of a video game. Sal was confused for a bit, but hit the start button, switching it over to a chapter select. 

Confused, I just let him do his thing, staring up at the noose.  _ Why does this scene look familiar... _ ? I thought to myself, scratching at my arm uncomfortably.  _ I feel..like I’ve seen this before… _

“Luke? Can you hear me?” Like always, Sal tore me from my thoughts and I turned to look up, jumping back when I saw the figure of a hanged middle aged man. “..Luke?” 

The corpse fell from the noose and stood, slinking towards us. Before the mouth was forced open, unhinged like a snake as a black shadowy figure emerged. Piercing red eyes- the same red eyes that Larry told us about, the same ones from my dream stood there in front of us. Nothing but pure malice came from it as it stood there.

I tightened my grip on the salt charm, feeling the bottle crack in my hands sending shards of broken glass into my skin. Ignoring the shooting pain in my palm, I chucked it as hard as I could towards the demon, which made it rear back with a hiss. At the same time, a loud screech from the end of the hallway emitted, and the demon let out one similar, fading away into the shadows.

Loud footsteps followed as Larry ran in, grabbing tightly onto Sal and I’s collars and forcing us up. “Come on, you can’t stay in here.” 

When we were pulled out of the crawl space, we stood silent as Larry picked up the fallen equipment outside. I stared at my hand, which was leaking blood from the cuts the charm bottle fragments left in my skin, but I didn’t have the energy to remove them. 

“What the hell just happened?” Sal mumbled, running his hands through his messy pigtails. Larry looked up with a toothy grin. 

“Todd gave me one of his inventions. He said that theoretically it could overload and destroy an evil spirit.” He explained, gesturing to the fallen devices. “After I got it, I came upstairs right away to make sure you guys were okay.”

“It’s a good thing you did.” Sal chuckled breathlessly, looking over at me with a concerned look. “Are you alright, Blank? Your hand..”

“I’ll be fine, Sal.” I murmured, wiping away a bit of blood before it could stain my sweater. The blue haired boy wasn’t satisfied with that answer and grabbed the back of it, flipping it over. 

“Dude!” He hissed, before he began to pull out some of the bigger shards. “You dumbass, why did you break the bottle?” 

“I thought it would help..” I answered honestly, wincing as he continued to pry fragment after fragment out of my hand, tossing them god knows where into the room. 

“So that red eyed creep has been here for decades?” Larry pondered out loud, shoving his hands into his pockets. “That was before I was even born..I guess maybe i’m not cursed after all.”

“Yeah, who knew Addison Apartments had such a dark past.” Sal added, and Larry nodded with an empty laugh.

“I thought living here with Charley was freaky, damn. This shit is nuts dude!” 

“Well, I don’t think we’ll have to worry about the demon showing up anymore. Blank’s charm and Todd’s thingy seemed like they took care of it.” Sal made a point to pull out another fragment as he mentioned the charm, which pulled a small whimper out of me.

“Not cool, Fisher Price.”

“Love you too, Fish Oil.” 

“...Oh…” Larry huffed suddenly, looking down at the ground, which tore me and Sal’s attention away from each other. 

“What is it?” I asked as Sal released my hand, turning to face the greasy brunet. 

“No, that’s great and all. I was just thinking…” He started, looking down at the floor with a harsh glare. “I guess since there’s no curse, this all means that my dad..he..he just..” Larry sniffled out, his eyes beginning to swell with tears. Not even a second later me and Sal had a tight grip on the crying brunet, holding him close as he began to let out small sobs. 

We stayed there for what felt like hours. Never moving, not even talking. Even after Larry had finished crying we stood there, a messy pile of teenage trauma. For once, it felt safe. Even after almost being killed, I knew nothing bad would happen as long as we had each other. 

  
  


**_-_ **

_ It was quiet.  _

_ It was always so fucking quiet.  _

_ It was dark, the void was endless. But I wasn’t afraid. This had become the routine nowadays.  _

_ And then it changed. I was no longer inside the void of darkness and despair. Instead, I was surrounded by oaky walls and family memories. Larry’s Treehouse, I recognized. How did I get out here? _

_ The sound of writing snapped me out of my thoughts and I turned to where they came from. There stood the man himself. But he was different- he looked older, more developed and his hair looked longer. Larry stood by the window, glaring out towards the apartment buildings, before he turned his sight down to the paper he was writing.  _

_ “Larry? What are you doing?” I called out to him, but was promptly ignored as he headed for the ladder. He disappeared for a good minute, and then came back up. I walked over to him briskly. “Larry!” Once again, I was ignored as the man settled down on the floor, reaching over next to him and grabbing a brown bottle and popping it open.  _

_ “I’m sorry, Sally Face.” He said out loud, reaching into his pocket and pulling out some sort of device. I couldn’t tell what it was, but he began to type into it. Every time he took a pause, he grabbed for the bottle, tossing back a swig. His eyes grew heavier and heavier as he did so, his hands becoming more and more shaky, until eventually he could no longer hold up the device. _

_ He let out a pitiful laugh, running one last hand through his hair. Then slowly, his eyes closed and never reopened.  _

_ The scene shifted, and there stood Sal. Older, just like Larry, his hair no longer in his trademark pigtails. He had his arms wrapped around the brunet, and loud wails erupted from him. Loud cries of “Why’s” and screams of anger and betrayal. The message from before was sitting on the treehouse floor, and I reached down and grabbed it. _

**_“Sal, I know this is gonna be hard for you to understand. I’m sorry. Please don’t blame yourself and please don’t hate me. I was lucky to have you in my life. I couldn’t have asked for a better friend than you, dude. I know you’re gonna do great things. You gotta keep going. Keep fighting the darkness. It’s coming closer now. I can hear it whispering in my head. It’s getting louder. I just need this to end. I can’t take it anymore. I’m not strong like you are. I love you, Sally Face. Always._ **

**_See you on the other side,_ **

**_Larry.”_ **

**-**

I sat up with a loud gasp, sweeping around the room. I wasn’t in the tree house, no..I was on the floor. The room wasn’t dirty, but it wasn’t clean either, and had the smell of pot lingering in the air.

Ah, that’s right. I was staying with Larry tonight. As I made this connect, I became increasingly aware of the soft sobs coming from the bed in the corner.The bed covers were pulled up, and all I could see was a blob in the darkness, moving with every sob. “Larry?” I called out, and the sobbing stopped, and the blob of blankets opening. Our eyes met- mine still blown from my nightmare and his red and tear filled.

We stared at each other for a bit, before we both gave each other a nod. Larry pulled back the blankets and beckoned me forwards, and I crawled in, wrapping my arms around the taller male as he brought it back over my shoulders. My bandaged hand went up into his hair, running through it softly as my other laid limp at my side. The brunet reached his arms around me and pulled me closer to his chest, nestling his face into my hair, humming a bit as we laid there.

We didn’t say anything. Because we didn’t need to. It was an understood agreement of healing, that we both wouldn’t let each other go through it alone.

And in that moment, everything was okay. 

There was no demon. 

There was no amnesia.

We were safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FLY ME TOO THE MOON  
> AND LET ME KICK IT'S FUCKING ASS  
> LEMME SHOW IT WHAT I LEARNED  
> IN MOON JUJITSU CLASS
> 
> Sorry if I made you cry-


	11. The Motivation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a bit of a filler chapter! Next one will begin the next arc, that doesn't follow main canon!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter to be honest. Not the best but it was necessary to bridge to the next arc!

It’s been a few months since the incident in Addison Apartments, and every day gets easier than the last.

Ever since the disappearance of the R.E.D. it seemed that the supernatural activity had bloomed anew. The ghosts on the 5th floor had become more open, being able to come between the dimensions. Stacy had begun to talk again, but her conversations were short and sweet- to the point. Megan had learned how to overload the new walkie talkies so that she could join in conversations, and hearing Larry screech almost every time was hilarious.

Larry..

The first month was the hardest for him. Any mention of his father made him tear up and go quiet. Sal and I had been worried, but we never tried to push anything out of him. Some days were harder than others, the poor guy couldn’t even get out of his bed. So we stayed with him, no matter what. Slowly, he began to accept what happened and became his old self again, happy and goofy like before. He became more..protective after the R.E.D. Incident, and I couldn’t say I wasn’t comforted by it. It was nice that we all had each other, especially when the adults wouldn’t listen. 

We never truly talked about what happened that night. It was an understood kickstart into each other's healing. He had practically ripped me a new one about my hand the next day, and told me that if I ever did anything that stupid again he’d never forgive me, Sal had backed him up with that one.

For the first time after losing all my memories, I felt truly safe. With Sal and Larry, I felt like I could take on the world as it was falling. 

I felt terrible not telling them about my dream. I wasn’t sure what it was truly. A simple nightmare? A premonition? 

Regardless, I would do everything in my power to never let it happen. 

**-**

“...Nk…”

“...Ank….”

“Blank!” I blinked out of my daze, meeting the deep green eyes of the person who snapped me out of it. I gave a sheepish smile as I reached back, rubbing at my neck as I remembered where I was. The school library, sitting and waiting for the rest of the group. We were going to have a study session because finals were coming up soon.

“Sorry Ash. I got caught up in my head.” I mumbled, waving my free hand 

Ashley Campbell, a sweet girl who loved photography, and was loyal to almost a fault stood in front of me. We had met through Larry, who introduced us during one of their painting sessions, and we instantly hit it off. That had also been a few months ago, now me and the shorter girl were practically thick as thieves. And here she stood, holding a huge pile of textbooks in her arms. I winced and stood, reaching over and took a few from the top. 

“I could see that.” The brunette girl answered back with a grin. “Were you trying to remember something?”

I shook my head as I set them down. “Not quite, I’ve just been thinking as all. The past few months have been pretty eventful.” 

She groaned as she took a seat across from me. “No kidding, Travis has been a nightmare lately.” 

I rolled my eyes at the mention of the boy. Travis Phelps, the local bully, son of a priest. Who’s only two thoughts were slurs or violence. Lately he seemed to make our little group his favorite target, namely Sal. 

“No..Well yeah he sucks, but I was thinking more of everything else.” I hummed, leaning forwards on the wooden table. Ash nodded her head, leaning her head forwards as well. “It’s been really quiet around the apartments, which is strange.”

“You said it, Tater Tot.” The sound of a bag hitting the table next to me forced a squeak from me as Larry took his seat beside me. The boy had a goofy grin on his face which made Ash laugh. “What’cha talkin’ about?”

“Not cool, Larold! You almost gave me a heart attack!” I cried, shoving him a bit which just made his grin widen. “I was just thinking about everything that happened at the apartments.” 

The greasy haired boy let out a hum and nodded, digging into his backpack for something. 

“You mean how the ghosts have been acting?” A soft voice questioned behind me, and I looked back to see Sal, holding a small pile of textbooks for himself. I smiled and gave him a wave, gesturing over to the other seat next to me. 

“Yeah, a little. Megan’s been talking more and more.” I added as the blue haired boy took his seat, waving at Ash. 

“She’s the little girl, right?” Ash asked, and Sal nodded to confirm. 

“It’s possible that the disappearance of the Demon had a better effect on the morale of the ghosts.” Another voice added as Todd and his boyfriend Neil walked up. Todd had his backpack while Neil held a big tray of snacks and drinks that he got from the vending machine. “At any rate, it seems the apartments are safe for now.”

I let out a loud cry as Neil sat across from me, passing me a bag of chips and an energy drink. “Neil I swear to everything you're my soulmate. Todd you better watch out, I'm gonna steal him.” I joked as I tore open the bag and shoveled some into my mouth.

Todd rolled his eyes as the rest of the table laughed. “I doubt that severely, B.” He then turned to face Sal. “Did you bring the Super Gear Boy with you?”   
  
“Yeah, I brought it.” The shorter boy said, reaching into his backpack and pulling out the modified game system, handing it over to the ginger.“I’m not sure why you needed it though.”

“I need to make sure that the hardware doesn’t malfunction, the pieces from Larry’s old walkie talkies were temporary.” Todd explained, pocketing the SGB. “At any rate, I should have this back to you before we head home.”

“Cool, I trust you Todd.” Sal said and then turned to his textbook. “At any rate, we’d better start studying right?”

Larry let out a small whine, but opened his textbook as well. I snickered at him and reached up, patting his head. “Don’t worry, Johnson, it’s just English. You can read, right?”

“You both got lucky, Mr. Dirk gives out the easiest tests.” Neil smiled, passing a study guide over to the greasy boy next to me. “Shouldn’t be too hard.”

**_-_ **

“Me and studying don’t comply.” Larry mumbled after about 2 hours in, taking the sheet of paper he completed and pushing it away from him. “I feel like my brain is turning into mush. I leave all my belongings to French Fry.” He pointed at me as he face planted the table with a loud grumble.

I snickered, reaching over and running my hand through his hair, which got a loud groan of contentment from the boy. “Here lies poor Larmey. I knew him well.” 

“I don’t know what that’s from, but fuck you I know you’re using my illiteracy against me.”

The blue haired boy next to me let out a tired sigh as well, reaching up and rubbing at his eye- at least as much as he could from behind his mask. “I do think we need to take a break, though.”

Todd let out a hum suddenly, reaching up and fixing his glasses. “Why don’t I give all you some motivation?” 

Larry perked up at that. “Motivation? Like what dude?”

“If everyone here scores better than a C on your finals, I’ll take the gang out to Funstein’s Pizza Factory. My treat.”

Ah Funstein’s Pizza Factory…greasy, low tier pizza, games and giant rats..and animatronics that would  give any child nightmare fuel for life. Good ol Funstein the Rat and his little circus of strange animals ran the show.

“You mean that entertainment restaurant in South Nockfell??” Ash asked and Todd nodded.

“I figured it would be a good place to get over the stressful past few months.”

I let out a cheer, pumping my fist in the air. “Fuck yeah, Toddy you’re speaking my language! I’m gonna punch the rat!”

Sal snickered, leaning forwards onto the table and propping his mask on his hand. “Larry or Funstein?”

“I’ll decide when I’m swinging.”

“Hey!” Larry shouted, and sent the table into a laughing fit, which earned us a loud shushing from the librarian in the corner. 

“But that means you have to pass your finals! Now get back to studying.” Todd added, and the table fell into silence once more. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Funstein's Pizza Factory, huh? Sounds familiar..
> 
> Regardless, I'll see you all next time for the beginning of the new arc, The Factory Reset!

**Author's Note:**

> The Room 404. 
> 
> Always empty.
> 
> And should always have been...


End file.
